On 18 September 2025 Prof Robert Beckman participated in a Panel Discussion on the Shadow Fleet that was organized by the Embassy of Estonia in Singapore and held at the Estonian Business Hub in Singapore. The Panel discussion was moderated by Damian Cheong, the Coordinator of the Centre of Excellence for National Security at RSIS. The other panel members were Dr Kristi Land, the Director General of the Legal Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia, and Mr Ragmar Saksing, General Manager of the Estonian Maritime Cluster. In his presentation Prof Beckman outlined the threat posed by oil tankers in the “shadow fleet” to the marine environment of coastal States. He highlighted that the majority of tankers in the shadow fleet are now flagged in States that have no capacity to ensure that the tankers flying their flag are in compliance with the IMO Conventions on the safety of navigation and protection of the marine environment, and that the many tankers in the shadow fleet are now fraudulently registered in States. Prof Beckman recommended that concerned coastal States consider invoking the dispute settlement mechanisms in UNCLOS to address the issues, either through a contentious case or a request for an advisory opinion from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. The questions and discussion also focussed on the law of the sea issues arising from threats to underwater infrastructure in areas outside the sovereignty of coastal States.  The latter issue is of special interest to Estonia and Finland. Click Sep 18 Beckman presentation Estonia Embassy to download the presentation.